What mood are you in before you start qualifying for Roland Garros?
I’m so glad I was able to play Roland! The Paris Grand Slam, of course, all French women love. I can’t wait to get started and I can’t wait.
You were disappointed not to receive an invitation to the main draw …
What mood are you in before you start qualifying for Roland Garros?
I’m so glad I was able to play Roland! The Paris Grand Slam, of course, all French women love. I can’t wait to get started and I can’t wait.
Were you disappointed not to receive an invitation to the main draw?
I asked for a wildcard but since I don’t train in the Federation, I don’t have priority on the list. I knew it wasn’t my favorite and there were chances I wouldn’t be there. But I’m sure this year I would qualify and that was the priority. What interests me is being able to play.
For the double we also asked for a wild card (with his partner, Estelle Cascino, ed.). We’ll see why the double starts in ten days and we won’t know the guests until next week. We have had very good results lately, we hope it will bear fruit.
“Lately I’ve had my best results in singles and doubles”
The goal will be to get out of the standings and find the table for a Grand Slam, which has not happened to you since 2019 …
Yes, of course. For all professional players, the goal is to really be in the Grand Slam. Qualifying is something I’ve already done and I know I’m capable of (1). It’s always very tight, at the start, because everyone wants to qualify for these tables. We’ll see what he gives. I’m happy to be here, no injuries, I’m playing well and I hope he sits on the court.
How do you rate your start to the season?
Last year I started the season in July, after the operation, because I broke a cruciate ligament in my left knee. I only did half a season, I had already taken all the points I had to defend from previous years (because of Covid) and I went back to the top 200 (that’s 193).i).
They were already very good results and at the beginning of the year I also played very well. I won a 50i world (Shuai Zhang, 59th, in Limoges, editor’s note), a top 200 (Ylena In-Albon, 165th) … Lately I’ve had my best results in singles and doubles. I work hard, I train a lot, I hope it’s worth it.
Have you regained all your physical abilities?
I went back to 100% of my chances, yes, even though I was entitled, like everyone else, to my Covid (river) break. My knee has recovered very well. I got a record recovery because I returned to competition six months after the operation, compared to the usual 8 or 9 months. My rehab was great, I was well surrounded. Since my recovery, I haven’t stopped much, not more than a week. Now, we need to keep picking up the rankings.
Jessika Ponchet hopes to surpass her best WTA ranking in the coming weeks.
File Nicolas Mollo
“We hope it works in our favor because I don’t think there are other French couples who have done our results in the last three tournaments.”
You are currently the 195th in the world. Have you set a goal for the rankings in the coming weeks?
I am very close to my best ranking (169th) and the goal is to get a better one quickly. I have no points to defend until July, so what I take is beneficial. Tournaments and good results need to be chained together as soon as possible.
In recent weeks, you have shone especially in doubles …
In December, with Estelle Cascino, we made our first final at the WTA Limoges tournament and behind, we did well. We’ve been playing together for a year, we’ve done a dozen tournaments together, we’ve already won two titles (Andrézieux-Bouthéon, Monastir) and we’ve played two more finals (Calvi, Saint-Malo), that’s huge. .
We play well on the court, we get along well and our games complement each other perfectly. We both have our best ranking in doubles (Ponchet is 130th, editor’s note) and we hope it continues. I’ve always really liked doubles and I have a game that lends itself well to it because I like volleyball, smash and the whole short game.
With this dynamic, you can stand out at Roland-Garros …
It would be great to get on the table because we are in a very good streak. We played with the top 100 doubles players, we saw we could beat them. We have the potential to be there. We hope it works in our favor because I don’t think there are other French couples who have done our results in the last three tournaments.
(1) La Landaise participated in the main draw of four Grand Slams, the Australian Open and Roland-Garros in 2018 and 2019.